Use tax will appear on ballot once again

Monday

Dec 3, 2012 at 1:00 PM

County will try again

Submitted

Randolph Countians will once again have the opportunity to pass a use tax.The proposal will be on the April, 2013 ballot, reports Randolph County commissioners Susan Carter, Wayne Wilcox and Jerry Crutchfield.The county-wide proposal was nearly defeated on the November ballot when it was passed by voters in Moberly and Huntsville. Clark voters rejected the proposal. A simple majority is needed for passage.In November, voters were asked to adopt the "local use tax" to complement each jurisdictions' existing sales tax. This is not a tax increase. This is not a new tax. A local use tax reflects the same rate as the existing sales tax. It is applied in lieu of the local sales tax on certain purchases made out-of –state which are brought across state lines for "use" in Randolph County. The current sales tax in Randolph County is 1.0The issue of passing a local use tax gained importance following an opinion issued by the Missouri Supreme Court on Jan. 31 of this year. The ruling stated that local sales taxes could no longer be levied on out-of-state purchases of motor vehicles, trailers, motorboats and RVs unless the taxing jurisdiction had passed a "local use tax". The law went into effect on March 21st and besides Randolph County, has affected approximately two-thirds of other Missouri counties where no "local use tax" exists. The Department of Revenue has estimated a 21% loss of revenue for calendar year 2012 for counties and municipalities without a local use tax. Randolph County is estimated to lose approximately $65 thousand dollars, money the county and cities have already budgeted.It is important to note that Missouri does have a state use tax in place. The Missouri Department of Revenue will continue to collect 4.225% on these out-of-state purchases regardless of what Randolph County voters decide. The majority of Randolph County citizens would not be affected by a local use tax. Individuals should pay only if out-of-state items purchased total more than $2000 annually. Local use tax is most commonly paid by construction contractors and businesses purchasing taxable supplies and/or equipment from out-of-state as well as those making large or frequent mail/order internet purchases from out-of-state for items to be used or consumed within the County. Contractors and businesses generally file use tax returns quarterly.According to information distributed by the Missouri Association of Counties in support of this issue, passing a local use tax will restore revenue being lost to out-of –state vehicle purchases; passing a local use tax will help eliminate the unfair economic advantage that those selling across state lines have over hometown merchants; passing a local use take will keep tax dollars in Missouri and help level the playing field for local merchants. For further information on this upcoming ballot issue, contact county officials.